Where the Heart Is
by Pir8grl
Summary: A little something that needed to happen after the crossover. **Chapter 2 is fixed now!
1. Chapter 1

Sara Lance hesitated just outside the open door of her father's office, chewing her lip uncertainly. He looked old, she thought, and wondered uneasily how much of that was because of her.

Quentin chanced to look up just then and spotted her. A broad grin lit his face as he got hurriedly to his feet.

"Sara! When did you get here?"

"Just now," she muttered.

"What, you don't got a hug for your old man?" he asked with mock effrontery, holding out his arms.

Sara hesitated for the barest fraction of a heartbeat before stepping into his embrace. His arms felt warm and strong and secure around her, just as they always had. She shuddered, then finally felt some of the tension drain away, holding on to him tightly.

"Hey, what's that matter, baby girl? Everything all right on that space ship of yours?"

"I'm fine, Dad," she mumbled into his shirt front.

Quentin frowned and tucked a hand under her chin, raising her face so he could see her eyes. "Sara? What is it, baby? You know you can tell me anything - hell, all the things I seen, I'll believe anything."

Sara's expression darkened. "Not this, you wouldn't. I lived it, and I'm still not sure I believe it myself."

"But you're all right?" Quentin asked, eyeing her with concern, searching for any sign of injury.

"I'm fine," she repeated stubbornly.

"You sure about that?"

Sara nodded.

"I worry about you, you know - out there flying around in space and all that. I know you can take care of yourself, but you're not like those guys that can fly around and shoot rays outta their eyes and stuff like that. I worry about you," he repeated.

"I know, Daddy. I worry about you, too."

"Hey, I'm mostly behind a desk these days."

"You hang around Oliver," she countered.

Quentin reached out and stroked her cheek gently. It took all of Sara's training and control not to flinch away.

"You're all I got in this world, baby girl," he said softly, then leaned in to kiss her forehead. "You sure you won't tell me what's bothering you? I can tell, you know."

Sara shook her head slightly. She couldn't. Not now…maybe not ever.

"You ever meet anyone when you're off saving the world? It's just…it's a hard life you chose, and you should have someone. You meet some nice fella out there, bring him home and introduce him to me."

Sara bit her lip again, and glanced down at the floor, then back up to her father's eyes. "What if it was a her?"

Quentin shrugged. "You think I care about that? As long as you're happy, I'm happy. You're my daughter. That's all I'll ever need to know."

Sara wrapped her arms around him and held on tight. "I love you, Daddy."


	2. Chapter 2

"Hey. Bout time you got back," he said, by way of greeting.

Oliver smiled, and glanced down at Felicity. "We had to check on William."

"Of course you did. My advice? Don't let him grow up. Wish I coulda done that. Keep 'em small and safe forever. Sara was just here."

"Good," Oliver said. "I'm sure she needed to see you, after this last mission."

Felicity laid a hand on Quentin's arm. "She knows that it wasn't really you…that you'd never…do…that…" Her voice trailed off at the blank look on Quentin's face. "Oh, crap," she muttered.

Quentin looked from Oliver to Felicity and back again. "I'd never do what? What the hell happened? Sara kept insisting that she was fine."

Oliver sucked in a deep breath, and spoke as calmly as he could. "That news footage from Central City?"

"Yeah? Looked like some kinda Nazis or something."

"Yes. They came from another earth. You understand that most of us have doppelgangers on these other earths…and I think you know better than most of us, those doppelgangers aren't always like us."

"Yeah…"

"The you on Earth-X was a very bad man."

"And Sara?" Quentin demanded, with a sinking feeling.

"We don't know much about her, other than…" Oliver's voice trailed off at the horrified realization dawning in Quentin's eyes.

"No."

Felicity stepped in close again. "It wasn't you. We know that. Sara knows it, too."

"Why didn't she say anything?"

"Because, Quentin, Sara loves you, more than anything," Oliver said gravely. "She didn't want you to think that there could ever be any version of you that could hurt her."

"Sorry!" Felicity squeaked.

Quentin looked up at Oliver. "I hope you took care of the bastard."

"We did."

"Good. What about the two of you? What were you on this other earth?"

Felicity smirked. "Oh, him? He was evil incarnate."

Quentin snorted. "And you?"

Oliver smiled fondly at his bride. "Felicity got herself in trouble for sharing food with starving children."

"Yeah, that sounds about right." He sighed, and scrubbed a hand over his face. "My baby girl…"

Oliver laid a firm hand on Quentin's shoulder. "It wasn't you, and it wasn't her. Try not to dwell on it."

"How's that work for you?"

There was no good answer for that.


	3. Chapter 3

Leo was waiting for Sara when she returned to the Waverider. "Where's Jax?" she asked, trying to cover the uneasy feelings that Leo-not-Len stirred.

"Doing something to the engines. It's better for him to be occupied. He was going stir crazy just waiting."

"All right."

"Did you see your father?" he asked carefully.

"I did."

"Good. I understand that on this earth, he's one of the good guys."

"He is," Sara agreed. "I know he is, it's just…"

"After what happened on Earth-X, you needed to reassure yourself. Perfectly understandable."

Sara stopped in the middle of the passageway. "Look, why do you even care?"

"Because I'm a decent human being?" Leo drawled.

Sara winced. 'Decent human being' was nearly as bad as 'hero.' Her Len would never… She shook her head sharply and turned on her heel.

"Sara." His tone was soft and compelling, and she stopped, rather against her better judgment. "I'm glad you saw your dad. Sometimes, it can be difficult to remember that these doppelgangers from other earths are not just duplicates of ourselves. They are separate individuals who have chosen their own paths. They're not just reflections."

"Except that sometimes they are. Felicity was kind and helpful. Mick and burning buildings. Even evil Oliver had some of the same traits."

"I didn't get to spend much time with your Miss Smoak, but she did seem to be a very lovely woman," Leo conceded, "but my Mick didn't set the fire - he was trying to rescue people from it. And I will admit, both Olivers were strong, charismatic leaders who loved fiercely."

Sara just stared. It was an accurate observation, but not one that her Len would ever have voiced.

"So what about… _ **him?"**_ Leo asked softly.

Sara raised an eyebrow at that, and Leo sighed.

"Master thief with an eye for beautiful things? The others have told me a few things."

Sara gave up trying to evade the question. If she were honest with herself, she'd been expecting it, on some level, ever since they met.

"Because I can assure you, I am not a criminal. Not by the measure of any sane society, anyway."

"He didn't make a move without a plan - everything accounted for, plus contingencies," Sara told him thoughtfully.

"Then what was that nonsense Barry was spouting about 'expect the plan to go off the rails, throw away the plan?'"

Sara chuckled ruefully. "He would tell you that was the fault of other people for going off the plan. He didn't like flying by the seat of his pants, but he could be flexible when necessary."

"Ooohhh, flexible. I like that."

Sara couldn't repress a grin. "You have a…a lightness about you that he never did. I expect some of that has to do with your Ray."

"I expect you're right."

Sara studied his face carefully. Leo didn't have the hard edges that Len did, and there was that softness in his expression when he spoke of Ray. "I don't understand you," she finally admitted. "Your world is so dark, and yet, you…"

"When your whole damn world is so dark, you need to make a conscious choice to be a point of light."

Now that was something the Leonard Snart she knew would never, ever say, and the sentiment should have made her scoff, but Leo just sounded so damn sincere.

"There's a difference between your whole world being awful, and having awful things done to you in a world that's otherwise halfway decent," he added softly.

To his surprise, Sara suddenly snorted with laughter. It took her a moment to recover enough to form coherent sentences. "I'm sorry, but are we actually talking about…feelings?"

"Yes, we actually are." He smirked then. "See? I told you I'd get through that crusty exterior."


End file.
